As a beauty queen who was disgusted by the photo shoots trashy attemp at publicity I applaud all these new ideas to make the pageant world relevant!

4:28 pm May 16, 2010

dump Trump wrote:

anything Trump does is suspect! stop watching his tacky shows!!!

4:52 pm May 16, 2010

Jen wrote:

Two factual errors: miss usa's name is kristen dalton and miss usa doesn't have a talent portion- that's miss america.

6:06 pm May 16, 2010

Sara wrote:

haha, funny! aside from the slight mistake of calling Miss USA 2009 "Kristie"....(psst, its Kristen!)....the rest of your list is awesome and so true!!!!

nice job

9:04 pm May 16, 2010

Bob wrote:

What a bunch of BS!!!!!!! Oklahoma should have won.

2:00 am May 17, 2010

Howard wrote:

Even Mr. Trump's sexy photos couldn't get me to watch the show. One reason, Donald Trump. More important though is that these pageants are so dated to the point of absolute boredom. I remember as a kid our whole family would gather around the tube to watch the Miss America Pageant. You've got some good ideas in this article - but I am sure Trump's ego is more important to him than the changes you suggest. Maybe these pageants low ratings are a sign that times have changed. Heck, we've been through the women's movement and equal rights, the pageants are like some relic of a bygone era.

10:18 am May 17, 2010

Cali wrote:

First of all, I am a huge fan of Pageants. SInce I have been little, I've been watching them faithfully although I do believe that the photo's this year are somewhat inappropriate for young viewers and not really in sinc with the meaning of what Miss USA should stand for. Miss USA should serve as a role model for young women. In the past, the women involved have been beautiful, well rounded, intelligent and community involved individuals. Being sexy, shoudln't be one of the critieria; at least not on the program. Do people enjoy seeing the photo's? Of course they do. They were all absolutely gorgeous. However, not appropriate for this arena. If they choose to become a paid model for Victoria's Secret in their future, then so be it, but it is not a positive addition to this contest.
I was absolutely flabbergasted when they announced this years winner. She was by far, the least qualified of the last 5 standing. It's confusing to me how on earth they based their decision. Miss Oklahoma was an absolutley gorgeous young lady who was well spoken and had alot to contribute to our country, as well as any of the other 3 women who were left standing. Rima, the new Miss USA, was the only one that I felt, although beautiful as well, was not classy enough to hold the crown. She spoke exactly like a girl from Queens New York would be expected to speak and I was actually embarrassed for our country to have her as a representative of our educated young women. I also don't belive that someone that was not born in this country shoud be a candidate for Miss USA. If her parents had imigrated before she was born, then fine. But not when she was born in a diffierent country. II will be very surprised to find out what on earth they based thier decision on because it certainly wasn't her poise.
"Now, Gimme a piece of Pizza and then I'll tell you how I really feel!"

10:25 am May 17, 2010

Anonymous wrote:

Last nights show was a joke. I will never watch again, especially after the judges picked a girl who nearly fell, could barely articulate a sentence all because she was of Arabic descent over four other much more qualified contestants. Great article.;

11:51 am May 17, 2010

SERIOUSLY wrote:

She is VERY beautiful BUT did any of the judges pay attention to her interview responses? After all, Miss USA and others have stated year after year that it is about more than beauty but also brains. Were the questions fair and of similar caliber? How can you ask one about the pageant pics or should birth control be covered by healthcare and another about BP or immigration? I grew up watching pageants, thanks Mr. Trump and judges for ruining pageant watching for my daughter and generations to come.

12:44 pm May 17, 2010

She Won! wrote:

Haters!

5:46 pm May 17, 2010

Lala wrote:

Clearly, you have never watched the Miss USA pageant, otherwise you'd know that talent is not part of the Miss USA pageant. So at this point, you have lost all credibility. Is talent an after thought? It's not a thought at all. Second, Miss America tried the whole, "let's tape the contestants and turn it into a reality show," and guess what? - they're not on the air anymore. Finally, if you go to wireimage or getty images and type in Kristen Dalton's name, you will find that she was on the red carpet plenty. Maybe now you'll understand the problem that the Miss USA pageant has. Your GRAND ideas have been done and still haven't made a difference. Maybe you should go back to the drawing board (and so should the Miss Universe Organization).

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Speakeasy is a blog covering media, entertainment, celebrity and the arts. The publication is produced by Barbara Chai and Jonathan Welsh with contributions from the Wall Street Journal staff and others. Write to us at speakeasy@wsj.com or follow us on Twitter at @WSJSpeakeasy or individually @barbarachai.